


The Joy of Dressing is an Art

by LadyKnightSkye



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Bendemption, Budding Fashionista Rey, Canon Divergent - AU, Canon Divergent - The Last Jedi, Empress Rey, F/M, Fashion AU, Padmé’s Dresses, Supreme Leader Kylo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-07
Updated: 2020-01-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:27:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22154005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyKnightSkye/pseuds/LadyKnightSkye
Summary: When Rey takes Kylo’s hand, he sets her on a throne, crowns her with gold, and proceeds to spoil her rotten as he takes over the First Order. He dresses her up in jewels and flowing dresses in every vibrant hue, and Rey basks in love and belonging for the first time in her life. They set out to make something new in this galaxy, but soon Rey starts to rankle at being dressed up like a doll and set up on a pedestal to be admired but not touched. Until one day, a gift arrives.A dress once worn by queen.~~~The joy of dressing is an art.- John Galliano
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 31
Kudos: 82





	1. Now

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a post from tumblr dot com. by user Myrcella talking about Empress Rey being dressed in Light colors and imagery, and well, it gave me an idea. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy it!

_In difficult times, fashion is always outrageous. — **Elsa Schiaparelli**_

* * *

When she had grasped his hand, full of fear and hope, she had never imagined that she would soon find herself unable to decide what to wear in the mornings. With a soft, secret smile, she looked through her dresses. She had the ones that Ben had purchased for her - rich fabrics, embroidered by hand and probably costing as much as the old AT-AT she called home Before - but her eye kept traveling back to the one she’d stuffed into the back. She had tried it on once, but the experience had left her . . . Unsettled.

She thought back to the day before, to the look in Ben’s eye when that awful Pryde had spoken to him of the Unknown Regions.

With a determined smile, she pulled out that last dress. It was beautiful, but it took her two tries to get into it properly. She felt a little exposed, since the dress left her shoulders and back bare, but when she figured out the hidden cinches, she loved the way the sleeves draped over her arms elegantly. For moment she was also concerned about the limited range of movement due to the sleeves being attached in an odd way. The hem of the dress was several inches too short, but she took the opportunity to wear a pair of strappy dark purple sandals. There were merely a sole with thin straps running over her foot and up her calf, with starbursts peppering the bands. Each star burst was set with a sparkling clear gem. She wiggled her toes, glad that she’d lacquered them in black the night before.

Rey decided to forgo most of her jewelry except for her halo coronet, and she wasted no time this morning twisting her hair into the intricate updo that helped keep the halo in place. Made of gold, it was the first thing that Ben had commissioned for her. He wore no crown to tout his position as Supreme Leader, but he wanted her to shine as his Empress. She thought it was an odd title for him to give her, but she’d learned quickly that he lived to pamper and spoil her. He heaped gifts she did not need, nor really wanted, but she took them with grace and turned around and told Hux to sell them and plow the money back into one of her pet projects. Ben knew, but he continued on as he’d begun.

He was a stubborn ass, her Ben Solo. From what she understood, it was genetic, though no one seemed to know if it was the Solo or Skywalker in him that made him such.

As she applied light cosmetics, she smiled at her reflection. The dress was a beautiful ombre from beige-y yellow down to a dusky purple at the hem of the skirt. A sliver halter kept the bodice in place. She turned, and walked to the door of her quarters. Ben wooed her, came to her chambers each evening to dine with her and discuss how they wished to run the galaxy, but they’d not even shared so much as a kiss. It frustrated the hell out of her, and she’d decided that things needed to change. For many reasons.

He was right outside her door, waiting to escort her to the throne room where she passed her days by his side. Reluctantly, Hux stood to the side. He’d been invaluable at first, though she was well aware that he would have probably preferred to shoot Ben in the back. However, somehow she’d managed to win the cantankerous general over by continuously asking him how things worked. He seemed especially fond of engineering, so by asking about how the equipment worked seemed to be the key to his regard.

Hux looked at her with an admiring eye. “Your Grace,” he said jovially, “you are simply stunning.”

She inclined her head and then glanced up at Ben. He was in full Kylo Ren mode, to the point that he would growl at her if she tried to call him Ben. She was used to keeping his true name private now. To Hux and the rest of the First Order, this man was Kylo Ren, not Ben Solo whether she liked it or not.

“That’s not one of the dresses I gave you,” he murmured, his dark, deep voice rolling over her.

With a deep breath, she answered. “It was a gift from your mother.”


	2. Then

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey takes his hand.

She stared at his gloved hand, unsure. It was tempting to damn the consequences and just, grab it. To throw away everything she had found for herself and to take what was being offered. She was untried, but not stupid. What he was proposing amounted to marriage, and she wanted it. Wanted to stay by his side and listen to his deep, dark voice for the rest of eternity. But something, some buried pride or honor or loyalty, made her hesitate. 

For a moment she considered just going for the saber, but then she decided on a different tack. “When Luke told me what he had done, what you had done, I didn’t abandon you. I care for them too. I can’t abandon them either.”

Something slid behind his eyes, but she was unsure of what it was. Jealousy? Dismay? But his words were gentle. “Wait.”

He turned, and walked over to the console at the side of Snoke’s throne. He seemed completely unbothered by the body as he tapped away. Rey could almost feel the moment that the ship stopped firing and powered down. Ben turned back to her, and held his hand back out. Sending one last glance to the fleeing Resistance, she looked back to Ben. She took the few steps it would need, and then placed her hand in his. He pulled her in close, his grip gentle, like he was afraid of hurting her. 

_This is it_ , she thought, _He’s finally going to kiss me!_

Except as she waited for him to bend down, he didn’t move. He stared at her, long and hard, and then gestured for her to sit. She glanced down at Snoke’s body. “Erm, Ben.”

Following her gaze, he flicked his wrist. The body went sailing across the room, and then over the edge. Rey blinked. “Do . . . Where does that drop off go?”

He shrugged, and she cocked a brow at him. “So, we’ve just been throwing people over an edge to . . . Somewhere?”

He was saved from having to answer by the doors to the throne room opening. “Supreme Leader Sno-“ The redheaded man slid to a halt, his mouth hanging slightly agape. 

Rey imagined they made quite the sight. Her sitting on the throne, and Ben standing over her protectively. The room was also still on fire, and there were still three dead bodies laying on the floor. The red headed man blinked several times. “Where is Supreme Leader Snoke?”

“Somewhere down there,” she replied.

The man followed her gesture, and sighed. “Well at least now I know why everyone in Navigation is screaming,” he muttered. He violently shook his head. “Wait! What are you doing on the throne?!”

“It’s hers,” Ben said firmly. 

“Hers?” 

“Snoke is no more,” Ben growled, “I am Supreme Leader now. And I say that the throne is _hers_.”

The man sniffed, but his cold eyes were shrewd. “Fine,” he said tightly. His myopic gaze turned to her. “And who even is she?”

“ _She_ ,” Rey snarled, “is sitting right here. My name is Rey.”

“Just Rey?” 

The two stared at each other, but after a moment, something changed in the redheaded man’s eyes. Something that looked an awful lot like respect was seeping in, and after another long moment, he nodded. “So, may I ask why she gets the throne, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren?”

Ben looked down at her. His face had barely changed, and she was starting to miss the faint curiosity and towering rage she’d seen from him before. It was better than this emptiness she kept seeing. “She is my Empress, Hux, and you will treat her accordingly.”

Hux’s eyebrows were nearly up to his hairline. “Really?” Beneath his breath he said, “I’ve never even seen you speak with a woman.”

“You know I can hear you, right?” Rey said deadpan. She looked up at Ben. “Is he always like this?”

Her answer was a large sigh.

“Well, Supreme Leader, we have some prisoners that you need to take care of.” 

“Prisoners?” Ben snarled. 

“Who?” Rey gasped.

* * *

Rose Tico blinked up at the couple on the dais with a little confusion. When Finn had seen the woman, he’d cried out, “Rey!”

“Traitor!” the man in black hissed.

“Finn!” The woman cried.

The redheaded general leaned over to her and whispered, “What’s your name?”

“Rose?” She blinked up at him. “What’s yours?”

“General Armitage Hux,” he replied. He nodded and stepped up to the dais. “Rose!”

Catching on to the joke she cried back, “General Hux!”

“Now that we’re all introduced,” General Hux said, ignoring the disgusted looks he was getting from the man in black and the woman on the throne, “Perhaps we should move on to deciding how to dispose of these two?”

Rey looked to the man in black, and shook her head. “Let them go.”

Hux and the man in black both did double takes. “What?” they squawked. 

Rey squared her shoulders. “I said, let them go.”

“And why ever would we do that?” Hux pressed.

The man in black glared at him, and then glared at Rey.

“Because, the Resistance is in a shambles! Why kill them?” Rey turned back to the man in black. “Please.”

Hux looked between the two of them. “Come now, Ren!”

The man in black flicked his eyes up to Hux. “What?”

“Are you really going to let them go?” he hissed. “They are spies!”

“Not very good ones,” the man in black said softly. He pointed to Finn and Rose. “This is the only time I will show mercy. Go.”

Hux’s face had gone completely scarlet. “What are you doing?!”

Suddenly, the man in black’s hand came up, and the Hux started clawing at his throat. “Do. Not. Argue.”

“Of course! My apologies!”

The man in black dropped him, and Hux wheezed as he tried to get his breath back. Rey sighed, and looked to them. “Please, Finn. Just go.”

Finn’s eyes were narrowed. “What are you doing? Are you just . . . Are you just going to stay here with him? What about the Resistance?”

She closed her eyes and her face twisted. “Just go!”

Rose’s heart squeezed. There was something else going on here. If Kylo Ren - because the man in black had to be Kylo Ren - had killed Snoke and taken the throne of Supreme Leader, why was _Rey_ up there? She reached out and touched Finn’s arm. “Time to go Finn.”

Rey took a comm unit from her pocket and tossed it to Finn. “Use this to call Chewbacca. He’ll pick you up.”

Finn snarled. “Fine. Fine.” 

Kylo Ren waved a hand. “Escort them to Docking Bay 1. Keep them under guard until they are picked up. Then prepare us for a hyperspace jump back to our main territory.”

“As you wish,” Hux wheezed. 

Finn turned to follow their escort, but Rose hung back. She took a step towards the throne, but stopped when Kylo Ren ignited his lightsaber. However, Rey finally rose from her seat, and touched his arm. Kylo didn’t put away his weapon, but he did let her by. “Yes?”

“Why?” she asked, taking another step forward. Rey stepped down from the dais.

Rey took a deep breath. “There’s still light in him,” she whispered. “I know it.”

Rose searched her eyes. “Then I’m staying. You’re going to need help.”

Rey nodded, and a small smile wreathed her face. Finn had stopped in the doorway. “Rose?”

Rose turned and nodded to Finn. “Go. Go back to General Organa and Poe and let them know I’m safe. I’m . . . staying.”

For a few moments three male voices rang out in protest, but Rey held up her hand, stilling them all. She turned to Kylo Ren. “I’m the Empress, right?”

His mouth was drawn into a tight line, but he nodded.

“Then I say she stays. She can be my . . .”

“Handmaiden,” Rose supplied.

“She can be my handmaiden.” Rey turned and looked at Finn. “It’s time to go Finn. Either go and meet Chewbacca, or I’m going to have to let Kylo and Hux throw you in the brig. Your choice.”

Rose felt her heart squeezing at the betrayed look in Finn’s eyes. “Rey. Rose.”

“Go,” Rose said again. “Trust us.”

With one final angry, sad look at them, Finn turned and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is swiftly becoming a bit of a comedy too. :)
> 
> Thank you again for everyone who has already left kudos and comments! Thank you so much~!


	3. Then

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter the designer.

After the preparations were made, the fleet jumped into hyperspace to return to First Order space. Ben quickly burst into action, ordering that one of the ornate guest cabins be cleaned and prepared for Rey and Rose. He was still not pleased that Rose was staying, but when Rey giggled at a pithy observation that Rose made, he seemed to soften towards the young woman. 

They were riding the elevator up to the bridge when he finally offered Rey his arm. She took it with a small smile. Beside them, Hux sniffed and offered Rose his. “What’re you doing?” Rose asked softly.

“I am not a heathen,” he said in supercilious tones. “You are the Empress’s handmaiden, thus you are deserving of escort.”

“Oh,” she said softly. 

Rey chuckled. “Don’t sound so happy about it.”

Hux scowled, but Rose giggled. The elevator doors opened, and the quartet stepped out into the bridge. All eyes turned to the new Supreme Leader and his Empress. Rey felt self-conscious and vulnerable. They were all staring at her, and she was aware that other than the bacta patch on her arm, she’d not freshened up after her epic fight against the Praetorians. She was sweaty, and the only one not dressed in some type of First Order uniform. 

Ben strode forward, and she followed along, her hand resting in the crook of his elbow. At one point his other hand came up to rest on top of hers, and that simple contact bolstered her courage. “How long until we reach the supply depot?” Ben asked.

“Two hours sir,” one of the bridge crew said. 

“Good.” He turned back to Hux. “When we get there, send for Mackelvy Seon. The Empress will need a wardrobe and access to the First Order accounts to outfit her rooms.”

“Of course,” Hux said with a borderline sneer. Rey couldn’t decide if he approved of Ben’s orders, hated them, or some odd combination thereof. 

Ben stared down at Rose, who defiantly stared back up at him. “And we will need to outfit the handmaiden as well.”

“With all due respect,” Hux said snidely, “why are you telling me this?”

Ben turned to the man. “Because I’m putting you in charge of getting it done.”

Hux turned an unflattering shade of red.

* * *

Hours later, Rey began to regret taking Ben’s hand. Not because she didn’t want to be with him, but because she had not realized that being with him also included dealing with the First Order. Hux was barely tolerable, but Mackelvy Seon was a boorish fop of a man. “Well, look at you,” he said, grabbing Rey’s chin roughly. The hair prickled on the back of her neck. “Kylo Ren seems to have found himself a very pretty whore.”

She reared back, but was saved from punching the man by Hux who intoned, “I would not refer to her as such, if I were you.”

Seon shrugged. “What is he going to do? Fire me? I’m the most exclusive designer in the galaxy. I have plenty of clients to keep me in business.”

“This is true,” Hux said, “But I still would not disrespect the _Empress_.”

Again, she couldn’t decide if Hux was being sarcastic or sincere. He wasn’t looking at the pair, he was sitting with a data pad. Rose was in the other room changing into a short shift that Seon’s timid looking assistant had given her. She walked out, and Seon eyed her with lust. “Another _Empress_?”

“Her handmaiden,” Hux replied in a bored voice. He finally looked up. “Get on with this please.”

Seon snorted, but took the two women’s measurements while his assistant took down his barked notes. His hands were rough with them, and Rey was ready to punch him when she watched him pinch Rose’s ass. She reacted by slapping him. “Hey!”

“You little bitch!”

Little did he know, but the prickling of Rey’s hair had been the first warning she’d had of her Bond to Ben opening up. Just as he raised his hand to slap Rose, the door to the room slid open to reveal a towering mass of rage. Seon went flying up into the ceiling. “You dare call my Empress a whore?”

Seon’s face was turning red as the Force tightened on his neck. Rey would usually feel that she should stop such torture, but the other man deserved it. “How . . . . How did you hear that?” Seon gasped.

Ben looked down to Hux, who had sat straight up upon his entry. “My Empress’s eyes are my eyes. Remember that.” He looked back up to Seon. “And remember this - if you say one wrong word, make one violent gesture, towards my Empress or her handmaiden again, _I will end you._ “

“Yes . . . . Supreme Leader.”

Ben let him go, and Rey listened to the thud of Seon’s fall as she watched Ben stride over to the chair beside Hux and sit down. “Now, show me what you have for my Empress.”

Seon sniveled a bit, but he was left with only a few bruises and a cut lip. He pulled out a holo deck and began to sketch. “For the Empress I was black with silver trim to match you -“

“No,” Ben snarled. He caught Rey’s gaze and held it. “White. I want her dressed in white.”

Seon blinked. “White?”

“Yes,” Ben growled. “White.”

Seon shrugged. “White it is. An preferences for the handmaiden?”

At this point, Rey had been holding on to her temper pretty well, but this was enough. “No.”

The three men in the room turned to her. She pointed to Seon. “Get out.”

The designer gasped. “What are -“

She whirled to Ben. “I’m the Empress?”

He nodded. “You’re the Empress.”

She turned back to the man. “Get out.”

His mouth worked like a beached fish. “I am the most exclusive designer in the galaxy!”

“You are the biggest snake in the galaxy!” Rey snapped. “You make my skin crawl and I would rather parade around completely naked then wear anything you design! NOW GET OUT!” In her pique, she ignited her saber.

Seon ran from the room.

Hux sighed. “Really.”

“He was an ass,” Rose piped up. 

“And who exactly is going to design Her Grace’s clothing now?” Hux shot back.

“Anyone but him,” Rey growled. 

“I can do it.”

All eyes turned to the young woman sitting beside the holodeck. She’d been silent the entire time, but for some reason had not run with Seon. “And why should we let you?” Ben asked, not unkindly.

The young woman gulped, pushing her blond hair away from her face. “Because I became his assistant to make my dream of being a designer come true. This is my chance, and I’m not going to let it pass me by just because you all terrify me.”

Hux cocked a brow, Ben nodded, and Rose wrinkled her nose. Rey just smiled. “What is your name?”

“Daaé,” she said, “Daaé Morin.”

“Well then, Daaé, show me what you have,” Ben commanded.

Quickly, the young woman took her place at the holodeck. She brought up a three dimensional model of a female body. She set the holo settings, and she started her sketching. The dress that took shape was high waisted, falling in graceful swathes of fabric. The lines were elegant, and after she set the color to white, Rey smiled. “I like it. I want it. You are going to design everything for me.”

Daaé smiled. “Of course, Your Grace. It will be my pleasure.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is when we start seeing all the awesome dresses~!
> 
> And thanks so much for all the people who are loving the fic!


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